Helpdesk

Rama's Roundup - Jan/Feb 2018

Firstly may I take this opportunity to wish you all a very Happy New Year.

Last term I managed to get out to start visiting several troops, units and districts and would like to thank you all for your hospitality. It some respects it was a term of campfires with a fantastic bonfire and fireworks display at Bungay (good luck in devising the next method of lighting the bonfire on a raft on the middle of the river) and Bury District’s Carols around the Campfire at RAF Honington.

As well as visits to sections in Beccles and a climbing evening in Great Cornard, I was privileged to attend an award ceremony at Horringer (Bury St Edmunds), where the local mayor and representatives from the Suffolk Guild of Ringers, recognised the achievements of five Scouts who had completed a pilot course which introduced them to the basics of Church Bell Ringing. Please let me know if any units or troops are interested and I can put you in touch with the Guild.

The Facebook site now has around 130 members and I would encourage all adults who work with the Scout and Explorer sections to join. Search Facebook for “Suffolk Scouting 11-18 years” there are three questions to gain access – but they aren’t too challenging. The group is used to share success and gain support as well as publishing details for upcoming events and I would encourage people to post details of their events to the page. Currently CMAT, Jamboree and Water Activities are posted but there is scope for more.

Two of my current areas of focus are Programme Development and Young Leader Training.

Please could I encourage everyone to download the Balanced Programme Checkers and have a go at filling them in. They are a simple but very useful tool to identify areas where there is room for growth and development. You will currently be planning or have planned your programme for the current term. Please remember to seek the views of the young people in the section and use these to shape the programme. There will always be ideas which present challenges but there are often solutions with a bit of lateral thinking.

The checkers can be found on the Scout website under “Programme” and “Review your programme” or by typing the following link

There are checkers for all sections (including Young Leaders) and links to Youth Shaped Scouting.

I would love to meet as many leaders and young people as possible and the easiest way to do this is often at events, district section meetings or district team meetings. Please ping me an email to let me know what you are doing in your area.

We are also looking at Young Leader Training and would like to share the good practice and success where this is working well, (with districts who are struggling with this) to explore joint working and a consistent approach and resources across the County.

I am hoping to call a meeting for District Commissioners, ADC (Scouts) and District Explorer Commissioners in the near future. More to follow soon.

Please feel free to contact me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 07897 136595